Strawberry Mini Cupcakes

I honestly don't know where my head has been lately.

There's been a lot of changes going on lately.  First of all, I'm going back to school!  I'll be getting my Masters in Education with an emphasis in school counseling, and I'm very excited.  Secondly, I quit my job!  I'm in the midst of my last week of work, and while it will feel weird to not be working (actually, I will soon be working for free as an intern at schools), I'm looking forward to this transition.  Lastly, I am on my way to becoming a domestic goddess.  This whole loss-of-income thing has been freaking me out, and I've been budgeting, creating spreadsheets, uncluttering, rearranging furniture, menu-planning, scanning weekly sale ads, and clipping coupons like crazy. 

Unfortunately, this newfound household organization has caused some disorganization in other areas of my life, namely in my ability to keep track of recipes, especially since I scribble recipes and measurements on Post-it notes as they enter my head.  I spent half an hour tonight searching high and low for my recipe for these Strawberry Mini Cupcakes, to no avail, then figured, heck, I created this recipe, so  I should be able to remember it, right?  Thank goodness my previously organized self had typed the recipe into a rough draft, because I don't think I would have gotten it right.  I probably should have checked my list of drafts before I tore the apartment apart.  By the way, if this post seems a little, oh, I don't know...rushed?  It's probably because I've gotten back into "school-mode" and I've been creating imaginary deadlines for myself, because if I don't blog about these cupcakes tonight, it probably won't get done for another three weeks, due to the fact that I'm making a wedding cake.  By the way, did I mention that I'm making a wedding cake for the weekend after my first week of school?  If in the coming weeks it seems that I've dropped off the face of the earth, that is why.  That will also be why this post will probably make no sense, because really, proofreading?  What is that?  And who has time for it?

But in all seriousness, these mini cupcakes are awesome.  Sometimes, strawberry-flavored treats can taste artificial, but these were made with ripe summer berries, and the proof is definitely in the pudding...err, cupcake.  They're not too sweet, so you can go crazy with the strawberry buttercream.  I had eaten 1/4 of the cupcakes before I got to the frosting stage, and I didn't quite have enough to pile the frosting high on all of them, the way shown in the pictures - I had to smear a thin layer on the last few.  The recipe as written would probably be enough to smear a healthy layer of frosting on all cupcakes, but if you want to pile the frosting high, you'll have to double it.  Which, you know what?  Do it.  After all, what's a cupcake without frosting?

Strawberry Mini Cupcakes
Makes 18-20 cupcakes

3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1/3 cup pureed strawberries
1 egg
1/8 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.  Line a mini muffin pan.

Cream the butter and sugar together until combined.  Stir in the pureed strawberries until light and fluffy.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda, and add half of the mixture into the strawberry batter.  Stir until combined.  Add the egg and milk into the batter; stir until combined.  Add the rest of the dry ingredients and stir until combined.

Divide the batter into the mini cupcake liners, filling each one about 3/4 full.  Bake for 15 minutes.

Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

1/4 (1/2 stick) cup butter, room temperature
3 tablespoons strawberry puree
3/4 - 1 cup powdered sugar

Stir together the butter and strawberry puree until combined.  Beating continuously, slowly add powdered sugar until the frosting reaches your desired consistency.  Spread onto the top of your cupcakes.